Purpose of Value Stream Mapping and Management

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Aspect	Value stream mapping	Value stream management
What it is	A technique that visually documents one value stream	The ongoing practice of governing and optimizing value streams
Cadence	One-time or periodic; a point-in-time snapshot	Continuous; tracks performance and drives improvement over time
What it produces	A value stream map: steps, flow, handoffs, timings, waits, and value-add versus waste	Owned, measured, continually improving value streams
Adds ownership and metrics?	No: it pictures the current flow	Yes: assigns ownership, defines KPIs, removes bottlenecks
Role in improvement	Reveals where flow is blocked or wasted	Acts on what the map reveals to realize the improvement

Cheat sheet

The purpose of value stream mapping and management is to understand, optimize, and continually improve the flow of value.
Mapping and management aim to reveal and reduce waste, bottlenecks, delays, and handoffs.
Value stream mapping and management surface improvement opportunities for continual improvement.
Value stream mapping provides the insight that value stream management acts on.
Mapping is periodic and point-in-time; management is continuous.
Management adds ownership, metrics, and governance on top of the map.
A value stream map shows the sequence of steps and the flow of work and information.
A value stream map shows handoffs between teams and where work waits.
A value stream map distinguishes value-adding steps from non-value-adding (waste) steps.
A value stream map records timing at each step so total lead time and waiting time are visible.
Timing and flow data on the map reveal bottlenecks and the biggest improvement targets.
A value stream map usually represents the current, actual flow as the basis for improvement.

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Cheat sheet